


Major Malfunction

by espurr_roba



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Gen, david you okay there bud, extreme misinformation over how the fuck crocheting even works, graphic depictions of crochet, hey david uhhhh ever hear of show don't tell amirite ha ha up top guys, is it sewing? is it knitting? i dunno!!!!, jasper is not a good actor but luckily everyone either doesn't care or are idiots, just a stabbed hand nbd, possessed max, very slight depictions of blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-13
Updated: 2017-08-13
Packaged: 2018-12-14 19:45:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11790165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/espurr_roba/pseuds/espurr_roba
Summary: Max isn't acting like himself, and it's up to David to get to the bottom of it.





	Major Malfunction

**Author's Note:**

> There's far too little possessed!max fics out there, I just wanted to even the scales a bit.

The first thing that should’ve tipped David off was Max’s lack of objections at today’s camp activity, but honestly, he had just chalked it up to the fact that _no one_ would complain about _crochet camp!!_

David was positive that Max was showing his excitement in his own way. He could certainly understand not wanting to “ruin one’s rep”, as the saying goes, so David felt that Max’s silence was a success in its own right.

And it wasn’t odd at all that he hadn’t once berated or insulted anyone, sometimes someone’s day just starts off so right that there’d be no need to dampen it! Sure, he hadn’t talked at _all,_ but maybe he was just tired; sleep can sure be exhausting!

...Alright, so maybe David was aware that that was stretching it a bit, but he really saw no cause for alarm that Max wasn’t directly antagonizing anyone. He figured he might as well count his blessing while they were there.

What _was_ odd was that Max was glancing everywhere for what seemed to be every second. Now that was mildly concerning, but then again, Max always had to have several cups of coffee in the morning, maybe that was finally catching up to him and giving him some bleary eyed paranoia.

Count your blessings, David, this was still a success.

“Alright, campers!” David beamed as soon as the timer rang the end of the activity. “Let’s see what wonderful things you all created!”

He was met with all sorts of knitted creations, from Preston’s tiny little Macbeth (or was that Lady Macbeth? Hamlet?) to Ered’s somehow ripped up scarf to Dolph’s… extremely detailed poster of a German building made entirely of yarn. The last but definitely and certainly and _definitely_ not least was Max’s, who had made…

“Oh, Max, what a beautiful hoodie!!” David smiled broadly, clasping his hands together. “I didn’t know you had such talent crocheting!”

Max blinked, giving David a stare. Something about that look made it hard for David to fully meet his gaze. “You mean it wasn’t obvious?”

The boy’s voice sounded disinterested and aloof, but there was a certain edge to it. Nervous, almost. That probably should’ve tipped David off more, but the counselor just tried rationalizing it as embarrassment.

Well, David was certainly going to relieve that! “You just never showed interest in this sort of thing, but you know what? I’m glad you found something that allows you to express yourself in a healthy and fun manner!”

Max glanced to the empty air just next to David. “Really…” he said mystifyingly before looking back to the counselor. “I, uh… Thanks,” he said, before adding “I-I guess” as an afterthought.

David looked back down at the hoodie, and honestly, it was really well made. The colors may have been an intense clash of neon colors, which honestly surprised David seeing as how he didn’t exactly think of bright neon colors when he thought of Max. Aside from the rather questionable decisions in color theory, the technique was amatuer but definitely solidly done, not to mention how it was the most functional creation in comparison to what all the other kids had made.

“Really, Max,” David said, “I’m very impressed with this! You should feel proud of what you made, and just think about what more you could do when you just apply yourself!”

David turned back to Max, right as the boy stared down at the ground. “Sure, okay. Can I go now?”

Max was… asking permission?

David blinked. And then, never one to look a gift horse in the mouth, David grinned and nodded. “Sure thing, Max! Don’t forget your new hoodie!”

As soon as David held the garment out, Max snatched it out and nearly ran off back to the tents. David watched as he sped walked right past Neil and Nikki, the two of them staring in confusion. 

Hm. Max was definitely not acting like himself.

…

This would be fine!

David put his hands to his hips and smiled brightly.

“I have a feeling today is going to be juuuuust—AHHH!”

Not one, not three, but two rocks fell straight from the tree above him.

This was still fine. Still fine.

* * *

 

“GodDAMMIT DAVID, why did you give these kids SHARP NEEDLES?!”

Alright so in hindsight, forgetting to put away the crochet equipment was not necessarily the brightest move, especially when kids like Nurf and Nikki and _Nurf_ would take the sewing and crochet needles the moment an adult was away and wreak havoc with them. It wasn’t exactly pretty. Oh, poor Space Kid…

David snapped out of his recollections, all too aware of a fuming and battered Gwen glaring daggers at him.

“Now, Gwen,” David tried, because an angry Gwen was a hurt David, and a hurt David and an angry Gwen was an unsupervised Camp Campbell, and an unsupervised Camp Campbell was a _very_ bad time. “I understand you’re upset, and you have every right to be, but please listen when I say that it didn’t end up _that_ bad, I—”

Gwen showed him the giant bloody hole in her hand, three sewing needles jabbed into it, all while flipping him off.

David shrieked.

“If you don’t get the first aid kit right this instant _I swear to FUCK—_ ”

David had already returned with the first aid kit and proceeded to apply, you guessed it, first aid.

He attempted to tug on the needles, but was too afraid of aggravating her wound any further. “So, um, was it N-”

“It was Nurf.”

“Ah.” He tried taking them out again, but when he pulled on one and she hissed, he stopped instantly. “Sorry, sorry! I just—”

“God you are such a fucking _pussy_.” Alright, well that was a little harsh but he supposed she had every right to be hars—oh good gosh she just pulled the needles out herself holy cow. Gwen stared him down, eyes stone cold. “You are buying me the largest bottle of booze for this bullshit.”

He nodded and started cleaning the wound.

He had to admit, it was an odd role reversal, him on the other end of the bandage here. Though unlike him, Gwen didn’t bawl her eyes out after getting stabbed in the hand, so it was clear that she was much better at this pain tolerance thing than he was. She was tough and could handle anything he couldn’t; he liked and respected that about her.

So when he started wrapping the bandage around her palm and heard her give a choked half-gasp, suffice to say that worried him. “Gwen! Are you okay?”

She swayed in her seat, staring blankly down at the ground. Then, slowly, she raised her gaze and stared at David with her green eyes. There was something off, something weird, but he just couldn’t put his finger on it even after Gwen started speaking, voice hoarse and dry. “No, fuckface, I got fucking—”

Suddenly, Gwen spluttered, hacking up spit and mucus, and David was close to applying the heimlich when she started breathing at an almost regular rate. “Oh fuck, that was… that was weird.”

“A-Are you okay?” David asked tentatively, glad that she seemed back to normal but still entirely unnerved over how un-Gwen-like she was just acting.

She raised her hand, inspecting the bandaged hand. “I mean… I got stabbed, so that’s something.”

So maybe that’s what she meant when she called him a frickface. Maybe it was just some weird reaction to getting stabbed with sewing needles that underwent some questionable things under Nurf and Nikki’s care.

“W-Why don’t you just take the rest of the day off, Gwen,” offered David, still feeling guilty that this was essentially his fault. It was the least he could do. Besides, it’d be best if she just took it easy if she was going to go through something like that again.

Gwen eyed him. “Are you still going to buy me alcohol?”

Without missing a beat, David handed her his credit card.

“Don’t mind if I do,” she beamed, taking the card with her good hand and sped out of the cabin. Not a second later did the camp car’s engine flair to life, and soon the squeals of tires faded out away from the camp.

Well… he certainly couldn’t fault her for her enthusiasm!

He could handle camp for the day by himself, no problem!

Yup, everything was still going to be juuuuuust fine!

And then he shrieked as a rock broke through the window and pelted him senseless.

* * *

 

“Hey, uh, David?”

“Yes, Neil?” It wasn’t every day the little scientist extraordinaire came to him for something, so David considered that a micro-success! “What can I do for you on this exciting day?”

Neil didn’t seem to share his enthusiasm. The boy’s hands fidgeted nervously, like they always did. “Yeah, uh… Have you noticed anything… weird, today?”

Weird? “If this is about that, ahem, _needle incident_ , then I can assure you I’ve safely locked those away—”

“Yeah, they’re definitely not safe,” Neil interrupted, waving a hand dismissively. “I don’t care about that, what I mean is that there’s something weird going on with Max today, and I don’t know why.”

David’s immediate reaction was to assure Neil that there was definitely nothing weird going on, that Max must’ve been having a good/bad day (he still wasn’t sure which one) and it would pass eventually. “What makes you say that, Neil?” He wasn’t sure why, but David felt compelled to pursue that train of thought.

“You mean you haven’t noticed?” Neil stared at him like he was a complete idiot, which okay, was rather _harsh._ “He’s… He’s not acting like himself. He’s not being a complete shithead!”

“Now, Neil, that’s a little _harsh_.”

“Don’t you give me that crap David, you and I both know Max is a complete jerk,” said Neil, and David felt a chill down his spine. “And he’s being so, so…”

“Hey, Neil, what’s up?”

Neil jumped in surprise as Max slid next to him. Literally. Somehow Max slid like he was on a slippery kitchen floor and not in fact a dirt ridden forest.

A tense moment passed, and Neil deflated. “Nice…”

David studied Max. The boy wore those oversized sunglasses of his, grinning broadly. Though he couldn’t see his eye, David could only assume that smile was genuine and not snide. That alone was unsettling.

“Max, Neil tells me you’ve been acting odd,” David revealed, pretending not to notice the absolutely betrayed look Neil shot him. David figured that, if he got to the bottom of this, then the ends would justify the means. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, sure, everything’s radical,” Max said, and he _must_ have been being sarcastic because Max would never say radical unironically.

Neil seemed to pick up on that too. “Since when do you say _radical?_ ”

“Uh, since ever, man,” Max _laughed._

David and Neil shared a look.

Max just keep smiling, and now there was a nervous edge to it similar to before.

That chill David had felt had gone past cold and went to full on freezing.

“M-Max, if there’s anything wrong, you should tell us,” David said, and it took all his willpower not to shiver. “We’re here to help you, you know.”

The boy turned his head to the empty space passed David’s head. “That’s… That’s hella gay, Davey, you’ve gotta be a fucking dumbass to think there’s something wrong with _me."_

That was better. That was more like Max. David had never been so happy to hear Max insult and swear at him, that was normal. That was Max.

So why did the freezing feeling persist?

Why did it still feel like something was wrong?

Apparently Neil was convinced. “Oh thank god, that was weird. Don’t pull something like that on me again man, I thought you were planning something devious.”

“Just shut up and let’s go,” Max said, turning away, Neil following along.

...Huh.

* * *

  
Nikki stared at him wide eyed, immediately stepping back from her lethal crochet needle stance. “You’ve noticed it too?”

David released the breath he wasn’t aware he had held. He _really_ needed to get rid of those needles, it was clear they weren’t safe from a wild child’s tenacity. “If there’s anything you know, please, tell me.”

Nikki stared for a moment, and then she shrugged and threw her weapon haphazardly behind her. “Not like I know much, David, but you know what? It wasn’t just Max.”

David blinked. “What do you mean?”

She glanced back and forth, then motioned for him to come closer, as if she were about to share a scandalous affair. “Between you and me? Neil was acting weird earlier too. I dunno if he even remembers it, but he was all like _aaaaaghh_ and at first I thought he was just doing an impression of someone with an asthma attack and then he was all like _graaaaaaah_ ‘cause he was acting all edgy for like a minute and then it was just like _oops back to normal_ you feel me?”

Truth be told, David found that really hard to keep track of. “I… edgy?”

“Mmhmm! He looked all dumb with the way he slouched, ‘cause he was all like _graaa—ACK!”_

Suddenly Nikki gave a half gasp, and David was almost convinced she was just doing an impression until she sank to the ground.

David rushed down to help her up, but she pushed him away the moment he made contact. “Get the FUCK away from me you pushy dumbass,” she snarled, green eyes glaring daggers at him. “You idiots just caaaan’t notice that fucking J—”

And then Nikki coughed violently, much in the same way Gwen did. “Oooooh, that was weeeeeeirrrrd…!"

David stared. “What… just happened, Nikki?”

Nikki cocked her head to the side in contemplation. “Not sure. But that’s probably what happened to Neil, ‘cause I know I felt like, just this huuuuge increase of edge, you know?”

“Um.”

And then she gasped, attention drawn back to the shed where the crochet needles had been locked away. “NURF THOSE ARE MINE I’LL SUE YOUR WHORE ASS.” With that, Nikki bounded away on all fours to chase after Nurf, too fast for David to comprehend until she was long gone.

Well… at least they were occupied and not attacking any of the other campers. And at least he threw away all the sharp ones.

That would be fine, he hoped.

But at this point he was entirely sure that the matter with Max was definitely _not_ fine.

Not fine _at all._

* * *

 

He was still trying to figure out what to do when the mascot platypus bit his foot.

David cried in pain, falling to the ground while clutching his poor foot.

“Muack,” quacked Platypus mercilessly.

“Hey, we do _not_ bite camp counselors,” David attempted to scold, but that only resulted in Platypus just biting his other foot. “Ow, okay, _please,_ what do you want from me?”

“Muack.”

Platypus waddled into the bushes. David stood, but hesitant to actually follow the animal until it quacked out an annoyed, “Muack!”

He trekked through a good part of the woods, struggling to keep up with the nearly-running animal until finally the trees broke away to reveal a lakeside fireside. Evening was swiftly turning into night, which made the island that loomed in the distance all the more spooky.

“What…” David started, unsure of what he was even expected to _do._

With a rope firmly bit down, Platypus dragged a run down canoe onto the beach.

“Do you… want me to use the canoe?” David asked, suddenly acutely aware that he was listening to a platypus of all things.

It turned to him, its beady green eyes boring holes into him. There was a meaning to it _somehow,_ one that made David feel compelled to figure it out.

Lost in thought, he hadn’t realized he didn’t move towards the boat until Platypus had waddled over to him and butted its head against his leg, pushing him forward.

He let himself be led to the canoe, and he almost had to ask where he was even supposed to go until he realized there really was only one place.

“Spooky Island…” he muttered to himself. Memories of the island flittered through his mind, none of them happy ones. He really didn’t want to go there.

But somehow, for some reason, Max was on that island. He was sure of it.

His camper’s safety mattered more than his fears, so no matter what, David was going to get Max back.

He stepped into the canoe and let it drift into the water, starting to paddle. He turned back towards the shore, which was already getting smaller the more distance he had away from it.

And he saw Platypus with its lifeless black eyes.

Something clicked in his mind.

David rowed harder, determined to get to the island.

* * *

 

David found Max sitting at the edge of the cliff, a familiar tree looming hauntingly in the distance. Ignoring the stab of panic that flashed through him, David took a seat right next to the boy, letting his feet hang freely.

“I didn’t mean for it to go this far,” Max said without being prompted, voice worryingly distant.

“I know,” David said, because really, what else _could_ he say?

Max stared down at the edge of the cliff, shoulders sagging with an exhaustion far older than the boy himself. He turned to David, blue eyes staring pleadingly into David’s, and…

And Max didn’t have blue eyes.

“You’re not Max, are you,” David blurted out, less of a question and more of a statement.

The guilty, downcast look was all the confirmation he needed. “Nothing gets past you, huh, Davey?”

Max--no, whoever this was--spoke with a sad familiarity to his words, one that David _knew,_ he just couldn’t place it.

“Where is he?” David spoke as gentle as he could, knowing that whatever this kid did to Max, there was no malice involved.

The boy pursed Max’s lips. “He’s fine, it’s just… complicated.”

“We’ve got time.”

The boy sighed. “Max is… here. And I’m not.”

David just cocked his head.

“Davey, I’m a ghost. I possessed Max’s body.”

The bluntness of that revelation just left David unable to say anything other than an underwhelming, “Oh.” And then, when he actually could think: “But where’s Max?”

“Right now? Right behind you, looking like he wants to stab both of us.”

David whirled around to see the lifeless forest behind him.

“He’s only a spirit right now,” explained the boy. “‘Cause I’m using his body, he doesn’t have physical form, so it’s really only other spirits that can see him. He’s… kind of a weak ghost, honestly."

Suddenly the boy leaned back, as if he was stricken. “Ooh, wow, that was _not_ a tubular thing to say, man.”

“I’m sure whatever it was he said he had _some_ reason for saying it,” David tried justifying himself.

“He said to go fuck myself with a rusty crowbar and set myself on fire.”

He was going to have to have a talk with Max over these incessant threats and insults once all of this was over.

“Well, _regardless,_ I think it’s time you return what you borrowed.”

“Time, huh…” The boy gave the ground a disgusted spat. “That’s all I wanted. Just a little bit of time to get away from this sucky place. I just wanted to know what it felt like to be alive one last time.”

“Stealing someone else’s life isn’t going to solve anything, though,” David pointed out. “It… doesn’t feel good, being someone you’re not.”

The boy stared at him, brow furrowed. “How would you know?”

“Well… When I was a kid, I knew this one camper,” David started, rubbing his arm bashfully. “He loved Camp Campbell, and I never understood why. He was pretty much everything I wasn’t. A good camper, a good friend…”

He was dimly aware that he was going into some dark territory here, broaching things he had tried so hard to push down for years, all in front of a dead child and presumably Max.

David, however, found it hard to stop. “And then he-he died. He died, and I missed him so much, and it made me realize I was kind of a bad kid. So, I figured, if I did what he did, if I loved the camp as much as he did, then he’d live on through me, somehow. I think after all these years of stealing his life, I forgot what I was doing in the first place.”

He stared down at the edge of the cliff, the same abyss as all those years ago. “I know now that I truly do love Camp Campbell, that this is who _I_ am, but it always hurts when I remember that it began when I stole his outlook on life.”

Suddenly aware of the tears slipping down his cheek and the boy who stared at him dumbfounded, David sniffed and looked away.

“...That’s some dark shit, Davey,” said the boy after a while.

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be. You’re right.” With a sigh, the boy stood up. “It sucks living someone else’s life. I miss mine, but… I know I’m not getting that back.”

The boy glanced up at the air passed David. “Sorry I caused you all this trouble. I’ll give you your body back.”

David felt the cold feeling that had been persisting all day whisk passed him, a weight lifting off of his shoulders as warmth seeped back into him.

Blue eyes looked back at David, guarded and mystifying. “You know… I bet, if that kid was here now, he’d tell you that you’re not all that bad. You’re one radical dude, Davey.”

The boy attempted a smile, but before the corners of his mouth could quirk all the way he collapsed to his knees. He wheezed, the air suckerpunched out of him, and when David went to help him up, annoyed green eyes glared at him.

“Calm your tits, camp man, I’m fine,” Max, _definitely_ Max snarled.

“Are you sure?” David had to ask. “You just spent all of this time as a ghost.”

“Meh, I’ve puked up scarves from a magic trick, this is mild trauma in comparison.” He brushed dirt off of his hoodie, then headed off back to the shore. “You coming, David?”

“I—yes, but wait, Max—”

“Ugh, _fine,_ thank you for getting me unpossessed or whatever, happy?” Max said, sighing in exasperation.

He really did appreciate the thanks, but no, there was something nagging in his mind. Pieces were connecting, from the old lingo to the blue eyes to the way the ghost boy had referred to him as Davey…

They were connecting, and David wasn’t sure if he could handle the finished picture.

His curiosity, however, got the better of him. “No, Max, I just wanted to ask… do you know who that was? The ghost who possessed you?”

Max stopped in his tracks. For a long time, he just stood with his back to the counselor, stance rigid and otherwise unreadable.

“No,” Max said. “No idea who that was.”

* * *

 

Jasper stared at the counselor and the camper, sinking farther into the shadows he hid himself in before sinking into oblivion.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I'll believe pretty much any Jasper's death theory tbh
> 
> One of my headcanons is that David blames himself _hard_ for Jasper's death and copes with it by acting as positive as he can so he doesn't have to feel the pain. :)
> 
> So anyway, hope you enjoyed!!


End file.
